


Nine Visitors

by Victorious56



Series: Numerically Speaking [9]
Category: RWBY
Genre: Domestic, Family, Lots of couples, M/M, house-warming party
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-20
Updated: 2020-12-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:41:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,032
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28172580
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Victorious56/pseuds/Victorious56
Summary: Qrow and Clover invite family and friends to their home on Patch for a house-warming gathering.
Relationships: Qrow Branwen/Clover Ebi
Series: Numerically Speaking [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1870408
Comments: 2
Kudos: 11





	Nine Visitors

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place about four years after the end of the war, in the spring of their first year on Patch.  
> Varin is a little over 2½ years old.

"Varin, no!" Clover's agitated voice was raised over the sound of the kettle boiling, as his son pulled James' ears yet again. For some reason, Varin was fascinated by the dog's ears, which were sometimes pricked up, and at other times folded over. Clover was worried James might lose patience one day and snap at the boy.

"James doesn't mind," Varin reasoned. "He's a good dog."

"He is," agreed Clover. "But he might get tired of having his ears fiddled with, and the only way he can tell you to stop is by growling or biting. We don't want to upset him, do we?"

Varin considered. "No," he decided. "Sorry, James!" He bent down and patted James firmly on the head. The dog looked up at him, his tail beating on the side of his basket.

"There, you see? He's happier now." Clover bent down and picked up his son. "You're getting almost too heavy for me to lift," he groaned.

Varin bounced against Clover's hip. "When I'm a man, _I'll_ lift _you_ up."

"You might well be able to. But that's a long way off. First, we have to get the house ready for our visitors. And even before that, I need a cup of tea." He put Varin down, reaching for the kettle. "Would you like a drink? Milk, perhaps?"

"Chocolate milk." Varin looked up at his father, who waited, smiling down at him.

"Chocolate milk..." prompted Clover.

"Chocolate milk PLEASE," Varin shouted, before sticking out his arms and running off, flapping them up and down and making a loud squawking sound.

Clover sighed. Qrow turning into a crow to delight their son had seemed like fun, for a while. Varin was convinced if only he cawed loudly enough, he was sure to get there in the end.

The sound of a car door slamming jolted Clover from his thoughts. _Surely they're not all here already_? He went to the front window, puzzled yet relieved to see only Qrow approaching the house.

"Well, that was a waste of time." Qrow tossed his keys into a bowl near the front door, and Clover helped him off with his jacket.

"What happened?"

"What happened, Papa?" Varin pulled on Qrow's trousers and with a tired smile, Qrow picked him up. "Why are you sad?"

"I'm not really sad, pipsqueak. Just disappointed the visitors won't be here until tomorrow." He turned to Clover, reaching in for a kiss. "The flight was cancelled, bad weather at their end. So they're delayed by a day."

Clover gave his husband a quick hug. "Ah well, never mind. It gives us an extra day to get the house tidy."

"Never mind, Papa." Varin kissed Qrow too. "It will be okay."

"Well, if you both tell me I guess I'd better believe it." Qrow laughed as he put Varin down. "Toddle off now, I need to speak to Daddy about stuff."

"Daddy, chocolate milk," Varin reminded Clover.

"Oh, sorry Varin, I forgot." Clover went to the kitchen, took the chocolate milk from the fridge and poured some into Varin's beaker. "Here you go." He lifted the toddler onto a stool at the counter, and Varin began to slurp his drink noisily.

  


Later that day Qrow and Clover were upstairs, looking at the bedrooms and wondering how many people they could squeeze in.

"If Varin comes in with us, you could get four in his room." Clover rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"How about Ren and Nora, and Jaune and Marrow. Would they be okay with that, for a couple of nights?"

"We should check, but I don't see why not. We've all bunked down together before in all kinds of places... this should be easy." Clover glanced at Qrow. "D'you remember the time we got stranded on the tundra overnight, and had to shelter in that emergency hut? We managed, didn't we?"

Qrow smirked. "I think we more than managed, sunbeam." He slid an arm round Clover's waist, his kiss finding the corner of his husband's mouth. "As I recall—"

"Papa! Daddy!" Varin's voice echoed up the stairs. "James wants to go outside! Can we play in the garden?"

Qrow turned to leave the room. "I'll go down, if you don't mind finishing up here?"

"You go, Qrow. Go and wear Varin out, maybe he'll have a nap this afternoon." He grinned as Qrow raised his eyebrows at his words. "Well, it's worth a try."

Qrow laughed. "It is. Coming, Varin!" he called, and went quickly down the stairs.

  


It was almost time to think about making dinner, when the kitchen door opened. Clover turned in surprise, as he knew Qrow was in the living room. A cheery "Hi, Clover! How're things?" greeted him, as Tai pushed into the room with an armful of pillows. "Qrow said some extra bedding would be helpful."

"Yes, thanks Tai. Let me take those." Clover relieved Tai of his burden, looking over his shoulder as two more people arrived with bags in each hand. "Hi there, you two! Thanks for bringing all this."

"Where do you want it?" Yang heaved her two bags into the room, turning to help Blake who had got stuck in the doorway. She pushed in, falling onto Yang who then fell backwards onto the bags she'd just put down.

Clover and Tai watched the two giggling women as they struggled to their feet. Blake tucked her hair behind her ear, her face red. "Hello, Clover. Sorry about... whatever that was."

"Don't apologise, we like to make an entrance, don't we, Blake?" Yang grinned as she pushed the bags across the floor with her foot.

"I'm sorry for my daughter. I keep waiting for her to grow up, but it hasn't happened, yet." Tai folded his arms, eyeing Yang as he tried to stop his lips twitching.

"I'm giving you the chance to get there first, Dad." Yang smirked as she hauled the bags from the kitchen into the hall. "I'll just dump these here," she called over her shoulder.

"Aunty Yang! Aunty Bake!" An excited Varin ran from the living room, to be swept up by Yang and spun round.

"Careful, Yang!" Blake had noticed how close Varin's feet were to the wall. "He's taller than he was."

Yang put him down, ruffling his hair. "You're getting to be a big pipsqueak," she laughed. "Isn't he, _Aunty Bake_?" She sidled over to Blake and pulled her into a hug. "So sweet."

Qrow appeared at the doorway. "Hi girls, how's tricks?"

"Fine, thanks, Qrow." Blake smiled at him, blushing a little as her fond gaze returned to Yang. "I'm just wondering what trouble these two will get into together."

"Surely Yang's a responsible adult now? I mean, you two are almost married, right?"

Blake blushed even more, and Yang frowned at Qrow. "That's meant to be a secret, who told you?"

"What, you're married already? What about your dad? What about _me_?"

"Of course we're not. We've been talking a bit, that's all."

"Oh well, Ruby must've misunderstood. I haven't said anything to Tai, so no worries."

"Anything about what?" Tai came through from the kitchen with two more bags. "Blake, why have you brought so much?"

"We were just playing safe. Yang said the weather can be unpredictable this time of year. Is that something you've noticed?"

Yang mouthed _Thank you_ at her girlfriend, as Tai's attention was diverted away from what he wasn't supposed to know.

"Aunty Yang! Swing again!" Varin was jumping up and down, clutching Yang's sleeve.

"Cloves, help me with this stuff." Qrow wasn't sure why everyone had congregated in the small hallway.

Clover edged through with two of the bags; Qrow took the others, saying to Yang as he went upstairs, "Mind Varin for a bit, could you, firecracker?"

"Firecracker!" shouted Varin.

Qrow heaved a sigh of relief, closing the bedroom door behind him. "When did everyone get so noisy?"

"Varin's just excited, he'll calm down soon." Clover began taking bedding from the bags.

"Then the next lot will arrive," Qrow grumbled. "My head can't take it."

Clover put the blankets down and came round to Qrow's side of the bed. He put a finger under his husband's chin, tilting Qrow's frowning face up and kissing him gently. "We'll cope, Qrow. It'll be lovely to see them all again... and they'll enjoy seeing each other. We only need to keep the food coming, and make sure they have somewhere to sleep. The rest will take care of itself."

"I know, really. It's just, with only the three of us, it's quite peaceful. I've got used to it."

"True, but... if we decide to adopt again, that'll be disruptive itself. Are you saying you don't want to do that?"

Qrow leaned back, his eyes widening in alarm. "No, no, not at all. Don't worry, Cloves, I still want— we always said two kids would be best, didn't we? Assuming we can adopt another one."

"Good. But... if you do get second thoughts, you must say, Qrow. It's too important a decision to drift into."

"Yeah, I know. That goes for you, too." He hugged Clover, then turned to the bed. "Right, let's get this stuff sorted."

  


Later on, settled on the sofa with a cup of tea and Varin almost asleep on his lap, Qrow decided he could just about cope. Tai brought through the last cups and handed one to Clover, retaining the other as he went to perch on the arm of a chair.

"Thanks, Tai. You've been a great help." Clover sipped carefully, keeping one eye on Varin in case he moved suddenly and jogged his arm.

"I can call in tomorrow, if you like? Or—"

"Probably best if you don't... I was gonna drop Ruby and Weiss with you first, before coming here with the others." Qrow was thankful for their car, which could seat two more people with the extra seats folded open at the back. "I hope the flight isn't delayed again tomorrow."

Clover stretched an arm across the back of the sofa, fingertips lightly stroking Qrow's hair. He leaned into the touch, before tilting his head to kiss his husband's hand. Varin wriggled deeper into Qrow's lap, and Qrow took a cautious sip of his tea. At that moment, his life was perfect.

❖

There was no travel delay on the following day, and Qrow dropped Ruby and Weiss at Tai's with a promise they'd all meet up the next day. The journey from Atlas was a long one, and although Ruby had insisted she wanted to see Varin, Qrow was firm.

"I saw you nodding off in the back seat, you know. Go in and get a good night's rest, and we'll meet up tomorrow."

Ruby opened her mouth to protest, but shut it again after a nudge from Weiss. The two girls clambered out, with repeated goodbyes to the remaining passengers. Qrow followed them to Tai's front door, exchanging a few words with him before returning to the car and buckling himself in once more.

"Not far now, guys." He glanced over his shoulder, noting Ren's relieved expression.

"I will be glad to regain the use of my shoulders," he murmured. Nora and Jaune were slumped either side of him, each resting their head on a shoulder.

"You could just wake them up," suggested Marrow from the front seat.

"Shh, let's enjoy the peace and quiet for a bit longer." Qrow pulled away from the kerb and the car continued on its way, arriving at the house by the lake no more than ten minutes later. Marrow jumped out, opening the rear door on Jaune's side and shaking him gently.

"We're here, Jauney," he whispered softly. Jaune sat up straight, his forehead wrinkled.

"I knew that!" He looked up at Marrow's smiling face. "I fell asleep, didn't I."

"You did. You should thank my shoulder— you too, Nora." Ren was nudging his girlfriend into wakefulness on the other side .

"Come on, you lot, get your bags and let's go in." Qrow rolled his shoulders as he stood by the back of the car, and after some stretching and yawning, the others got out and collected their luggage.

❖

It was the first time most of the guests had visited Patch, so Clover—after an emotional reunion with Marrow, in particular—was happy to show them around the garden. None of them knew anything about carpentry, but nodded politely as they examined Clover's handiwork. After watching them through the window for a while, a small smile on his face at the sight of his husband's enthusiasm, Qrow thought they deserved a break. He made a pot of tea, then went upstairs to see of Varin had finished his nap.

Qrow stood at the side of his son's bed, enjoying the sight of Varin dozing peacefully, one arm wrapped tightly around the soft dragon toy which had been a present from Tai. Enjoyable though the peace and quiet was, Qrow knew if he napped for too long, Varin wouldn't want to go to bed at all later. Making more noise than necessary, Qrow moved about the room, opening and closing doors and drawers until Varin began to stir. He sat up, knuckling his eyes with both hands.

"Papa!"

"That's me." Qrow sat beside him on the bed. "Are you ready to come and say hello to our friends?"

"Yes!" Varin scrambled off the bed, and followed Qrow down the stairs, stepping carefully whilst holding onto the banister rail. Qrow carried the dragon, which went everywhere with Varin, much to Tai's delight.

"Go and see what Daddy's up to." Qrow opened the back door and Varin hesitated on the step. There were lots of people in the garden he didn't know, and he turned back to Qrow with a worried expression on his face.

"Are they _all_ your friends, Papa?"

"They are! Look, there are Ruby and Yang and Blake. And Daddy is talking to Marrow, they used to work together once upon a time."

Clover glanced back toward the house, and smiled widely when he saw them. "Come on, pipsqueak!" he called, holding out his arms. Varin took his toy dragon, then ran to Clover, who scooped him up and swung him round. The toddler shrieked with pleasure, and Marrow looked worried until he saw that Clover was laughing.

"Is he always that loud?" Clover stopped twirling and settled Varin on his hip, smiling at Marrow's question.

"Nearly always. Aren't you, rascal?"

Varin was studying Marrow. "You're my Daddy's friend," he announced.

"Yes, I am. It's nice to meet you, Varin."

"Do you want to see my swing?"

"Uh, yeah, if that's okay?" Marrow glanced at Clover, one eyebrow raised.

"Sure! Don't push him _too_ high, though."

"I won't, Daddy."

Marrow and Clover exchanged a laugh as Varin took Marrow's hand and led him away. Clover watched them go, as Qrow joined him carrying a tray full of mugs of tea.

"We're lucky the weather's dry." Clover took a mug from the tray. "Thanks, birdy. Do you need a hand?"

"It's fine, I'll hand these out and then we can cut the cake."

Team RWBY had presented them with a large iced cake, the message _Happy New Home_ written in icing on the top. It was soon cut and distributed, and the garden became quieter as everyone began eating.

Varin had taken a liking to Marrow, and was sitting on his lap eating his piece of cake. Marrow glanced at Jaune, who nodded slightly, his face reddening. Marrow coughed, and said loudly, "As we're all here, I wanted to say something."

All conversation stopped as eyes were turned toward him. Marrow cleared his throat. "Uh, the fact is, Jaune and me have decided to get married."

The momentary lull was broken by Ruby, who jumped up and ran to Jaune, hugging him tightly. Her eyes were bright with tears as she whispered, "I'm so happy for you."

Jaune's face was redder than ever as he and Marrow received the good wishes of everyone there. Varin finished his cake and looked at Marrow.

"Why are you crying?"

Marrow sniffed, releasing Jaune's hand to rub his nose. "Because I'm happy. Very happy," he added, looking at Jaune.

"Oh! Alright, then." He wriggled off Marrow's lap. "Do you want to play football now?"

  


The afternoon wore into the evening. Varin went reluctantly to bed, insisting he wasn't tired, but falling asleep before Clover was halfway through his bedtime story.

More food was brought out, and the garden lights were turned on as twilight darkened the sky. Tai had brought some bottles of sparkling wine— _non-alc, of course, Qrow_ —to toast the new home, but it became a toast to Marrow and Jaune. And also, as it turned out, Ren and Nora.

"We've wanted to say something for ages, and now you've beaten us to it!" Nora gave Jaune a friendly push.

"We could have a double wedding, maybe." He looked over to Ren, who had said little but was wearing a very wide smile.

"Maybe. If we can work out a suitable date and location." The four of them drew together and began discussing possibilities.

Tai was sitting near Yang, Blake on her other side. "And what about you two?" Tai's grin was not returned by his daughter.

"What makes you think we'd get married, even if we wanted to?"

"Don't you, then?"

Yang glanced at Blake. "Of course we do! It's just—"

"We haven't sat down and talked it through properly, Tai. There never seems to be time—"

"Then make time. Just do it, Yang. It doesn't need to be a big deal, if you want something simple. I won't be disappointed if you don't want me to give you away."

"That's lucky, because the only one giving me away, is me." Yang spoke firmly, but she took Blake's hand and squeezed it. "We'll do it, Dad, when we're ready."

Blake leant towards Yang and whispered in her ear. Yang grinned. "While you're at it, you should ask Ruby what her plans are."

Tai's eyebrows shot up. "Ruby? Why would—"

"Yang! You weren't meant to say anything!" Ruby glared at her sister, and Tai noticed Weiss was sitting very still, her cheeks bright pink. He looked from her to Ruby.

"But I thought... Penny..." he stumbled to a halt. "Have I put my foot in it?"

"No, Dad. It's just... we've decided to live together. The three of us. Because... because we all love each other and that's all there is to it." Ruby finished in a rush and fixed her father with a stern look. "And if you don't like it, well, too bad."

Tai blinked several times. "Uh, I can't pretend to understand, but if you're all happy with the arrangement, who am I to say anything?"

Ruby flung herself at Tai and hugged his neck. "You're the best dad." She held out a hand to Weiss, who joined in the hug hesitantly. "It's a shame Penny couldn't come with us this time, but she will next time, and then you'll see, Dad. It all just works."

Tai beamed over their heads, forehead still faintly wrinkled as he looked at Qrow and Clover. "Kids these days..." he muttered, returning the hug until both Ruby and Weiss squeaked in protest.

Clover put his arm across Qrow's shoulders, drawing him close. The evening was cooling rapidly, and Qrow shivered slightly.

"Looks like everyone is settling down. It's really nice." Clover sniffed, and Qrow peered up at him.

"Need a hanky, Cloves?" he smirked, sliding an arm round his husband's waist.

"Don't tease me because I like seeing people happy." Clover squeezed extra hard.

"Ow, sorry. It's sweet, though." Qrow raised a hand and gently wiped the tears from Clover's eyes. He glanced at Tai.

"How about you. Tai? You can't be kicking around by yourself forever, now your daughters are all settled."

"Yeah, Dad. We need to find you a nice person, you can't expect me and Rubes to look after you when you're old and decrepit." Yang laughed, and Ruby joined in.

"Who's this Cinnia you keep mentioning, then?"

Qrow's eyes gleamed. "Aha, what's this, Tai? What aren't you telling us?"

Tai glanced at Qrow and looked away. "It's nothing, and even if it was... it's nothing..." His unconvincing protest fooled no-one.

"She works with Dad and she seems very helpful. She's always in his office apparently." Ruby looked from Tai to Qrow. "And she calls him up quite often at home, too."

Clover laughed at the expression of delight on Qrow's face. Tai was redder than Clover had ever seen him, his mouth opening and closing with no result. Ruby, having sown the seeds of the revelation, had walked away with Weiss to talk to Nora.

"Don't, Qrow. You know _you_ wouldn't like it."

"Cloves, if you only knew how he teased me over and over, about you..."

Clover raised an eyebrow. "Did he, now?" He regarded the man sitting opposite. "Did you, Tai?"

"I may have made a few comments." Tai coughed, and lowered his voice. "The thing is, I didn't want to upset the girls. To give them the idea that... I was replacing their mums, or something."

Qrow's expression softened. "You couldn't, even if you wanted to, Tai. Which you don't, so... good luck. I hope it works out how you want it to." He raised his almost empty glass to his brother-in-law.

Tai huffed out a long breath. "Thanks, Qrow. She— we don't know how it'll go, but... she's nice. Perhaps, in a while... I'd like you to meet her."

"We'd like that, Tai." Clover stretched his arms out sideways, one hand coming back to stifle a yawn. "Sorry, it's just... it's been a busy day."

Qrow glanced across to the group of youngsters— _not quite youngsters now_ , he admonished himself—where Ren was fiddling with his scroll.

"Okay if we have some music, Uncle Qrow?" called Ruby.

Qrow nodded, observing to the other two men, "It's going to get a bit noisier, I think."

  


Some hours later the garden was quiet, the lights turned off. A fox barked in the distance, and the house by the lake settled into night.

All nine visitors were under one roof. Late in the evening, Tai realised he'd drunk more than he intended. He suggested they ring for a taxi, but Ruby had persuaded him they could bunk down here. "It's a shame to miss the time together, Dad, we've such a lot to catch up on," she begged.

Tai looked helplessly at Clover. "It's your call, sorry to screw up the arrangements..."

"It's fine, Tai. We can sort something out, I'm sure."

  


Coins were tossed to see who had to sleep on the floor, and soon a variety of pillows, blankets, and quilts were strewn about the living room. There was just enough space for everyone, and if little sleep was achieved that night, no-one complained.

  


After organising the sleeping arrangements, Clover and Qrow finally made it to their bedroom. Varin had turned himself sideways and stretched out across the bed, so Clover moved him carefully into the middle, Qrow shushing him gently as he roused up and started to grizzle softly. Within minutes he was asleep once more, and the two men were able to relax at last.

"This has been one of the busiest days we've ever had," whispered Clover. "But it's been great, hasn't it? Seeing them all together, and all the good news about people getting engaged or whatever..."

"Mmm," Qrow agreed sleepily. "They're a good bunch. Always said so."

"That's partly due to you, you know." Clover reached out a careful hand and stroked Qrow's side. "You took good care of them back then, Qrow. You old mother hen."

"Oi, less of the hen. I'm a good, honest crow."

"You are. You're my Qrow, and that makes me so happy."

"You never miss the chance to be sappy, do you, Cloves?"

"Never. It's my mission in life to say nice things to you, always."

"I can go along with that." Qrow's voice was becoming slurred with sleep. "'Night, dearest husband."

"Sleep well, birdy."

**Author's Note:**

> Friendly comments always appreciated, thank you.


End file.
